Redskins Nation is a half-hour show devoted to giving fans unfiltered access to the day's events at Redskins Park. Hosted by Larry Michael, the show features Redskins players, coaches and sit-down interviews with team officials. (Show re-airs at 11:30 p.m/7:30 a.m. daily)

Redskins Nation is a half-hour show devoted to giving fans unfiltered access to the day's events at Redskins Park. Hosted by Larry Michael, the show features Redskins players, coaches and sit-down interviews with team officials. (Show re-airs at 11:30 p.m/7:30 a.m. daily)

Redskins Nation is a half-hour show devoted to giving fans unfiltered access to the day's events at Redskins Park. Hosted by Larry Michael, the show features Redskins players, coaches and sit-down interviews with team officials. (Show re-airs at 11:30 p.m/7:30 a.m. daily)

Redskins Nation is a half-hour show devoted to giving fans unfiltered access to the day's events at Redskins Park. Hosted by Larry Michael, the show features Redskins players, coaches and sit-down interviews with team officials. (Show re-airs at 11:30 p.m/7:30 a.m. daily)

Redskins Nation is a half-hour show devoted to giving fans unfiltered access to the day's events at Redskins Park. Hosted by Larry Michael, the show features Redskins players, coaches and sit-down interviews with team officials. (Show re-airs at 11:30 p.m/7:30 a.m. daily)

Redskins Nation is a half-hour show devoted to giving fans unfiltered access to the day's events at Redskins Park. Hosted by Larry Michael, the show features Redskins players, coaches and sit-down interviews with team officials. (Show re-airs at 11:30 p.m/7:30 a.m. daily)

Redskins Nation is a half-hour show devoted to giving fans unfiltered access to the day's events at Redskins Park. Hosted by Larry Michael, the show features Redskins players, coaches and sit-down interviews with team officials. (Show re-airs at 11:30 p.m/7:30 a.m. daily)

Redskins Nation is a half-hour show devoted to giving fans unfiltered access to the day's events at Redskins Park. Hosted by Larry Michael, the show features Redskins players, coaches and sit-down interviews with team officials. (Show re-airs at 11:30 p.m/7:30 a.m. daily)

Redskins Nation is a half-hour show devoted to giving fans unfiltered access to the day's events at Redskins Park. Hosted by Larry Michael, the show features Redskins players, coaches and sit-down interviews with team officials. (Show re-airs at 11:30 p.m/7:30 a.m. daily)

And then the brand new pregame show on FOX-5, “Redskins GameTime” with Doc Walker:

This show takes on a reality TV show feel, and breaks down the upcoming opponent by taking a look at the X’s and O’s of game film. The show includes a feature that takes you behind the scenes of a Redskins player preparing for a game, and Wired Up, a segment devoted to microphoning a player at practice.

Earlier this week, we looked at some of the memories of 9/11 from the players on the roster. Yesterday, head coach Mike Shanahan, defensive coordinator Jim Haslett, and offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan shared their memories of that fateful Tuesday as well.

Oddly enough, their stories are all connected.

Mike Shanahan was the head coach in Denver a decade ago. The night before the attacks in New York and Washington, his Broncos had defeated the Giants 31-20 on Monday Night Football.

This was his reaction to playing on Sept. 11:

“It’s a special moment and you think back where you were that day or the day before. I was playing a Monday night game against the Giants and went to work the next day and I believe the Giants, when they came in, they were right next to the gate where one of the planes was taking off. It is a very emotional day for a lot of people.”

.

The following week of football was canceled across the league. When play resumed the following week, the Giants played in Kansas City, winning 13-3. The week after that, the Giants returned to New York to take on the New Orleans Saints, where Haslett was the head coach at the time:

“I remember on September 11th, I was actually getting the game plan together in New Orleans. I was watching the TV and they showed the tower. Then they showed the second one and I was telling the coaching staff that a plane ran into the World Trade Center. Then the following week we had to play the Giants, which was a heckuva sight, and we didn’t have a chance to win the game. That was the most emotional that I’ve ever seen a football game. We were the visiting team and we didn’t have a chance.”

The following week, the Giants reeled off their third straight victory after the attacks. The team? The Redskins.

.

Meanwhile, Mike Shanahan’s son, Kyle, was a wide receiver at the University of Texas. He had a far more collegiate perspective of the events:

“I was in college and I actually overslept for a class. Someone banged on my door and woke me up. I didn’t even think it was a terrorist. I just thought it was a bad accident. It was really shocking.”

It’s no coincidence that the Redskins are playing the Giants, as the matchup was hand-selected by the league to commemorate the tragedies.

But given their respective roles a decade ago, it’s pretty interesting how they’ll be involved again on Sunday.

It’s been a while since we’ve updated the facial hair growth on rookie nose tackle Chris Neild, and at last look, he was planning to keep it for training camp. At that point, Neild wasn’t sure if he would be around longer, so no need to make hasty predictions.

However, now that he’s a member of the 53-man squad, there’s no need to get rid of it.

“I dunno what the plan is,” he said. “I’ve been shampooing it.”

In August, Neild was living out of the team hotel and was primarily using low-grade hotel shampoo. Since then, he’s upgraded to snagging whatever shampoo he can find in the team locker room. Read more »

This, however, is not a concern for Redskins head coach Mike Shanahan.

He said that regardless of whether the starters take the field, that there’s a lot of talent in every NFL roster. His game-plans don’t change:

“I don’t fall into the trap of people talking about injuries,” he said. “It happens to every team in the NFL. You don’t dwell on it because all 53 guys on your football team can play. You’re one play away from being the starter and there are a lot of guys that all they need is that opportunity to show people what they can do, especially in a special game like this.”

Check out the full video of his press conference and injury report below: Read more »

This is not exactly Hardy Boys-esque, but Chris Cooley just may have solved the mystery of who broke into his Leesburg pottery “Cooley Gallery.”

For those of you that missed the back story, Cooley’s gallery was broken into last week. His wife, Christy Cooley, told police that the pottery on display was untouched, but a cash-register had been stolen.

The deal was he smashed through the front door. I guess he was intoxicated. He left blood all over the gallery. He went in and took a computer and the cash register – left finger prints everywhere. He figured out the computer was just a computer and not a safe, so he smashed that and left it [and then] walked out the back alley way.

If I learned anything from C.S.I., it means that this guy left about four different kinds of DNA samples behind. That’s more than enough for Robert David Hall in the crime lab to secure an arrest.

Last night was a great matchup between two NFC teams with big expectations. It was Lombardi, it was the NFL opener, and as long as you don’t care for defense, it didn’t disappoint.

But it really had nothing to do with the Redskins.

Neither the Packers nor the Saints are on the Redskins regular season schedule in 2011, so there was no scouting to be done. Neither team’s roster had any meaningful connections to the Redskins, so that was out as well.

Thank goodness DirecTV put out a commercial with a favorable prediction for the Redskins-Cowboys rivalry: Read more »

Like this:

Welcome to the 1980s. Michael Jackson was the King of Pop, fluorescent paint was in, and the Redskins were the best team in football.

The 1980s panel on the Redskins history wall is by far the largest, and rightfully so. This was the Burgundy and Gold age of enlightenment in the NFL, when The Hogs dominated the line of scrimmage and The Diesel rumbled the gridiron.

The Redskins kicked off the 1980s by making the single greatest coaching hire in franchise history, bringing Chargers offensive coordinator Joe Gibbs over from San Diego. During the two labor strikes in the decade, Gibbs engineered his team-first rosters all the way to Super Bowl victories.

Whether it was by air or by ground, the Redskins offense was unstoppable and the defensive line was impenetrable on the biggest stages. Whether it was Joe Theismann, Doug Williams or Mark Rypien, the Redskins were blessed with prolific passers and the steady defense of young defensive back Darrell Green.

This decade was also the heyday for RFK stadium, which literally shook from the pulsating Redskins faithful. The roar of “We Want Dallas!” still rings in the ears of those that were there, and the Redskins-Cowboys rivalry was never bigger.